Mustard Systems
Graduate Programme - US Sports
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We are a small, world-class quantitative trading firm where machine learning, neural networks and advanced data engineering drive our algorithmic trading strategies.
Our Graduate Programme is an excellent opportunity to start your career at the intersection of technology, mathematics, sport and financial markets. This year’s programme will focus on one particularly exciting challenge: building a new trading operation targeting emerging prediction markets in the UK and the rapidly growing US sports market.
You will join a small group of exceptional graduates working alongside experienced quants, developers and traders. Together, you will develop the models, technology and trading processes needed to identify and capture opportunities in new and fast-moving marketplaces. This is not a conventional graduate scheme built around classroom training and short-lived exercises. You will work on a live commercial product from the outset, solving real problems with real consequences.
Programme Content
Prediction markets are creating an entirely new landscape for quantitative trading. New exchanges, products and market structures are appearing rapidly. Prices can move in milliseconds, liquidity can be fragmented, and similar outcomes may trade differently across multiple outlets. We are building systems to understand and trade these markets at scale.
You will be given genuine responsibility and a problem to solve from the beginning, such as:
- Process live sports, market and pricing data
- Build a model to estimate probabilities and identify mispriced contracts
- Design, develop and optimise high-frequency trading systems
- Analyse strategy performance in testing and live trading
- Implement tools to manage trading risk, capital and exposure
- Investigate platforms, products and markets to identify opportunities
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There will be enough structure to help you understand the problem, but you will be encouraged to investigate, experiment and develop your own ideas with support from the wider team.
Programme Structure
The programme lasts 12 months.
Your role will be varied and unbound by a narrow description. Developers will need to understand markets. Traders will need to understand data. Quants will need to turn their ideas into functioning systems. The team will combine software development, quantitative research, sports analysis and trading, with each person contributing according to their strengths while learning how the whole operation fits together. The team shares ideas, solves problems and builds better systems collectively, and each team member will develop expertise across all disciplines and support others in doing so.
As the programme progresses, you will take increasing ownership of the areas where you show the greatest ability and interest. You do not need to arrive knowing exactly what you want to specialise in. Part of the purpose of the programme is to discover your abilities and interests.
Following the initial 12 months, successful candidates will have the opportunity to join the team permanently.
Requirements
There are no specific experience requirements. You might be an exceptional developer, a strong mathematician or quantitative thinker, or a sports fanatic who has spent years analysing prices, stats and performance. What matters is how you think.
You don't need equal strength across software development, mathematics and sports analysis, but we look for depth in at least one area and the curiosity and flexibility to work across disciplines.
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A successful candidate will:
- Be highly analytical and enjoy solving difficult, unfamiliar problems
- Be comfortable working with large datasets and complex systems
- Have the ability to turn ideas into practical solutions independently
- Be curious and eager to learn how models, technology and markets interact
- Enjoy working in an environment where speed, accuracy and reliability matter, and be willing to test ideas and challenge assumptions
To apply, you must have
- A bachelor’s degree or higher in a quantitative subject from a leading university
- The right to work in the UK, or the ability to obtain it
- Evidence of something you have pursued independently outside your formal studies. This could be software you have built, research you have conducted, a model you have developed, a business or society you have started, a game you have analysed, or simply a difficult problem that captured your attention. We want to see evidence of curiosity, originality and the ability to turn an idea into something tangible.
Application Process
The process for this role is:
- A cognitive ability and problem-solving assessment
- A 30-minute phone interview with a senior member of the team
- A technical in-person interview based on the type of problems we work on
Benefits
Comprehensive benefits, including:
- Competitive salary and significant bonus potential.
- Offer of permanent position to successful candidates.
- Enhanced pension match with salary sacrifice option.
- Health insurance and life assurance.
- 33 days of annual leave (including bank holidays).
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